River City Story

Chapter 14

After Lin Yan finished the test paper, he looked up at the clock. It was less than 8 o'clock.I changed my shoes, turned off the lights and went out.He turned around a few times along the tree-lined path outside the court, and it was almost 9 o'clock before he stopped near the fence.By the light, he saw that He Zhengxi was still playing ball with Feng Bowen.Lin Yan cleared his throat, and yelled against the fence: "What are you playing, He Zhengxi, it's time, go home!"

He Zhengxi's soles of his feet were slipping due to Lin Yan's sudden howl, so he had to make a gesture with Feng Bowen to stop dribbling, and turned around to look outside. After searching for a long time, he vaguely recognized it in the corner. That familiar shadow.

He hurriedly grabbed the ball and ran out, and said with an exaggerated expression: "I was scared to death, brother, you look like our school dean is catching a puppy love on the playground."

Lin Yan snorted coldly and took out his pocket: "You are quite experienced, have you been arrested?"

He Zhengxi smiled and said, "How is that possible? I just look at other people. It's impossible for me to fall in love with your brother early."

Lin Yan unconsciously raised his calf slightly, and habitually wanted to rub against the concrete platform at his feet. When he lowered his head, he suddenly saw that one of the laces on his canvas shoes had been buckled off, so he had to stand up straight again.He raised his eyes and looked at He Zhengxi who was doing stretching exercises under the lights of the stadium. His calves were straight and slender, and his hair was flying upwards due to sweating. There seemed to be a gust of wind all over his body, and his whole body was exuding a youthful spirit. .

It turns out that a boy of this age can still be so energetic, like a tender grass leaf with water droplets after the rain, it is really good, Lin Yan thought in a daze.After a few more years, he should be able to gain the hearts of many girls.

He nodded in satisfaction, smiled and said to He Zhengxi, "You really look more and more human as you grow."

He Zhengxi, who had successfully upgraded to a human, felt aggrieved. He leaned in front of Lin Yan with sweat all over his face, and asked, "Could it be that I was not a human before?"

Lin Yan pushed him back slightly: "It's okay, you were like a primitive man in the mountains when you were young, and now you can enter the village."

He Zhengxi gave his brother a thumbs up: "You really know how to praise people, I am very touched."

Lin Yan frowned: "You can think about it quite well, which of my words is a compliment?"

After hearing this, He Zhengxi immediately started pretending to be stupid, scratching his head and laughing, without saying a word.He looks dumb and naive, ignorant and dumb, but quite cute.He Zhengxi with this appearance wanted Lin Yan's heart well.

"What about the two of them?" Lin Yan raised his hand to smooth He Zhengxi's bangs, and patted his head after he was done, with a shallow and gentle smile on his face.Not like my brother, but rather like a very old elder.

"It's a two-person world. You didn't come. I'm always like a light bulb." He Zhengxi let him fiddle with him. Every time Lin Yan made such a move, He Zhengxi always felt that he might be treated like a dog. dodge.But Lin Yan's hand rested on his head, and it was quite useful. He hesitated and said: "...Brother, don't stroke my front hair from now on, but you can touch my head more, it's very comfortable."

Lin Yan paused for a moment, and then slapped harder: "Okay, let's make an inch of it!"

"Hey!" He Zhengxi took two steps to the side, retreated into the court, and said dissatisfiedly, "Be nicer to your favorite brother!"

Lin Yan walked up to him, and made a gesture to kick his ass, "I'm not good enough for you? Little white-eyed wolf! Today is too late!"

The two chased each other around in circles, like children, attracting many passers-by to watch.

"Hey, hey, the two over there still say that we are a two-person world! Aren't you pretty gluey too?"

The two brothers turned their heads to look for someone in unison, and after looking around, they saw Song Rui who was squatting on the ground and waving at them.

"I told you two, it's really enough. If those crazy women in our class saw it, they would definitely be able to enter the third courtyard." Song Rui has been around since just now, but the two brothers have their own enchantments. Chatting and fighting as if no one was there, no one greeted him.

"Where is the third courtyard?" He Zhengxi tilted his head and asked.

"Our mental hospital is right behind Song Rui's father's company building." Lin Yan replied.

"Ah? What does it mean for a girl to go crazy..." He Zhengxi didn't understand Song Rui's words.Lin Yan didn't understand this question, so he shook his head, and both of them turned their questioning eyes to Song Rui.

"Uh...that's... anyway... I don't understand." Song Rui turned to look at Feng Bowen who was walking over, asking for help from the sidelines, "Xiao Fengzi, hurry up, tell them."

Feng Bowen put his arms around Song Rui's shoulders, and made a deep gesture towards the confused two: "Well, maybe the girls in your two classes can answer this question."

"Cut." Lin Yan turned his head, and imitated He Zhengxi's shoulder, "Don't say it, let's go home."

"Hey! Let's go to the world of two people!" Song Rui stood on tiptoe and stretched his neck and shouted.

The tips of Lin Yan's ears were immediately congested and turned red. He turned around and pointed his middle finger at Song Rui, shouting, "Song Rui! If it weren't for the fact that you are about to take the college entrance examination, I would have kicked you straight away!"

Feng Bowen saw that he was angry and worried that Lin Yan would be really angry, so he had no choice but to hold Song Rui who was inexplicably excited in front of him, and warned in a low voice: "Don't provoke him, children are sensitive, when the time comes Really beaten."

"Got it..." Song Rui stretched boredly, calmed down, packed his schoolbag and music listening equipment, bid farewell to Lin Yan and the others, and walked out of the stadium with Feng Bowen.

Since the end of April, Xicheng has already faintly started to enter the summer. Now it is the end of May, and the wind at night is warm.Lin Yan and He Zhengxi struggled through the smoky food stalls across the road, and walked towards Linshui Street amidst the enticing smell of charcoal-grilled pork belly.

He Zhengxi was at war in his mind, but he had already eaten and could not eat any more, besides, Lin Yan would never allow him to spend his pocket money to buy skewers.Thinking of this, he secretly sighed and picked a topic to divert his attention.

"Didn't it mean that the law and order is not good recently? I see that everyone is eating and drinking, and there is nothing wrong with it."

"That's right." Lin Yan nodded, "I lied to you. Brother Lu Chi said that there is nothing wrong with the recent crackdown. Besides, we are poor and stingy, and it is not certain who will snatch anyone by then. "

He spoke clearly and logically, even when he talked about "it's not sure who will steal who", there was a smirk on the corner of his mouth.He Zhengxi thought he was interesting, like a bandit who could deceive people.On weekdays, he is quiet and well-behaved. When he sees a fat sheep, he can definitely show his big knife directly, cut off the most tender part of the body accurately, take it home, chop it into stuffing, make dumplings and cook sheep soup.

Just as He Zhengxi thought of this, Lin Yan beside him suddenly said, "Let's eat dumplings stuffed with mutton tomorrow. The supermarket closes at 10 o'clock. We can catch the discount now, but we have to hurry up, maybe someone has already snatched it up." If it's all gone, buy something else to eat..."

Before he finished speaking, He Zhengxi laughed and didn't stop until he reached the entrance of the supermarket.

"You're being stupid again, go push the cart, and you have to carry a bucket of peanut oil back."

Lin Yan glanced at He Zhengxi, and then began to look for Lin Fei unconsciously. It wasn't until the strange short-haired girl on the cash register came into view that he remembered that Lin Fei had graduated from college for more than a year, and was recently Lin Yan felt a little lost when preparing for the wedding.It wasn't until last year that he realized that he actually liked Lin Fei a little bit.However, it's just a boy's longing for the big sister, not a crush, but Lin Yan will still feel sad when he knows that she has a boyfriend who is going to talk about marriage.

"Brother, let's go." He Zhengxi touched Lin Yan's butt with the shopping cart.

"Understood." Lin Yan withdrew his gaze, put his hands on the edge of the basket in front of the cart, and the two of them speeded up together tacitly and went straight to the fresh food area.In fact, Lin Yan doesn't like to eat mutton very much, it's too smelly, and he will feel sick when he smells it, let alone come here to buy raw meat.

For so many years, Lin Yan has eaten less than 20 mutton dumplings in total, and each time he only holds a chopstick symbolically.He Zhengxi belongs to the person who enters the state of selflessness immediately after eating, and Lin Yan has never had a big appetite, so until now, he has not noticed that his brother doesn't like to eat mutton.Lin Yan never thought of telling him, because He Zhengxi would be very concerned about it, and might quit this thing directly.

He Zhengxi just loves this, there is no way, not only mutton, he also has a soft spot for beef, in short, as long as it is meat, there is almost nothing that He Zhengxi doesn't like.Lin Yan actually likes to see He Zhengxi burying his head in his food and concentrating on eating, which gives him a sense of accomplishment.

Holding his nose, Lin Yan snatched the last piece of lamb rib fan, and Lin Yan handed it to He Zhengxi contentedly, and asked him to take it to the master to twist it into stuffing. Onion, then went to pay the bill with He Zhengxi and rushed back.

As a result, when they came to the door of their house, they were really unlucky enough to encounter such a thing as roadblocking and robbery.

The two brothers were walking in tandem, but when they were about to turn a corner, a man suddenly jumped out from the side with two bags under his arms.This man ran towards them desperately, followed by two young men, shouting, catch a thief, someone robbed.

Lin Yan thought to himself at the time, it's over, he's a crow's mouth, he can say whatever he wants.Based on the principle of running away if he can't beat him, he quickly pulled He Zhengxi who was still in a state of shock, planning to find a place to hide for a while, but the alley was so big that there wasn't even a second-level alley. He Zhengxi's arm, the man ran over.The two turned sideways and closed their eyes, looking at death as if they were at home, planning to die heroically.

"Brother, we have no money. There are mutton stuffing and peanut oil, which are worth more than 100. Take them away, don't be disgusted!" Lin Yan shouted.

The robbery suspect took a hasty look at Lin Yan, probably thinking that the kid had a problem with his head, so he passed the two of them and continued running without thinking.Seeing that he was about to leave the alley, He Zhengxi didn't know what to say suddenly, he pulled Lin Yan's hand off his arm, and chased after him.

Now Lin Yan was going crazy.

"Damn! What are you doing? Come back to me!"

But He Zhengxi had already ran tens of meters away, and when the sound fell into his ears, he didn't even respond, and his steps were still as firm as the wind.Lin Yan cursed a few words secretly, mentioned peanut oil and minced meat, and Sa Yazi also started to chase.At this time, the two people who were robbed behind happened to catch up panting.

The narrow and quiet alley suddenly became so lively.If someone is flying a drone in the sky at this time, they will definitely be able to take a set of magical shots like a movie, like a road movie, funny and absurd.But Lin Yan couldn't laugh, he was about to explode.

He Zhengxi had quicker legs and feet than him, so he ran out of Linshui Street not long after.The more Lin Yan chased after him, the more angry he became, and when he was about to yell, there was a noise from a distance, with the sounds of motor vehicles and electric vehicles one after another.Now Lin Yan stopped being angry, his whole body began to turn cold, and his heart was beating wildly.

He hurriedly ran out, searched nervously for a long time, and finally saw He Zhengxi among the crowd.

This bastard is riding on the robber and feeding his fists.

"You can't escape even if you kill him!"

Lin Yan hurried up to pull the man, but He Zhengxi turned a deaf ear to him, and continued to greet the man with his fist, seeing that he was almost unconscious, with blood all over his face.In this situation, even the two people who were robbed were frightened. They stood there in a daze, not daring to go over and drag people with their bags.Seeing that He Zhengxi's eyes were red, Lin Yan couldn't help but start to feel a little scared. There were more and more people watching nearby, and most of them didn't dare to come up to fight, they were afraid of being accidentally injured.Lin Yan's heart froze, he hugged He Zhengxi desperately, and pulled him out.

"Okay, if you hit him again, you will really die!" Lin Yan felt flustered as he looked at He Zhengxi who was losing his mind and going crazy.He suddenly recalled Xu Jialin's appearance when he was drunk, and the current He Zhengxi looked too strange, even a little scary.

"I'll kill you, human trafficker! Robber! You should die! You should die! You should die!" He Zhengxi roared with red eyes.

Traffickers?Hearing this sentence, Lin Yan suddenly looked at the half-dead robber.He once asked He Zhengxi if he could still remember what happened when he was a child. At that time, He Zhengxi just shook his head, but he still remembered the little boss among the several human traffickers.The man had tattoos on his left hand, bald eyebrows, stitches on the corners of his eyes, and scars on both calves!

really……

The world is really small, the buddy who is being beaten up in front of him is probably the scum who kidnapped and sold He Zhengxi back then!

Thinking of this, Lin Yan suddenly felt relieved. He thought that He Zhengxi was really going to be a permanent resident in the Third Academy. Now it seemed that he was just going to report at most.The child sees the blood of the enemy, it is normal to stop it.So Lin Yan let go of his hands and backed away, found a chair among the mess on the ground and sat down, crossed his arms, and began to applaud He Zhengxi.

"Brother! Do you understand boiling frogs in warm water! Don't hit them so hard at once, or your hands will hurt. Let's separate them, we're not in a hurry! Take it easy, and I'll boil eggs for you when I get home! Here, I'll give you two green onions, pump them vigorously." !"

He Zhengxi had almost vented his anger at this time. Beating people is a physical activity. With his 12-year-old physical strength, it is far from enough to fight the adult robber in front of him for [-] rounds. Hearing Lin Yan's instructions, he followed the steps He quickly withdrew from the man's back and started kicking with his own brother's voice in his ears.

Lin Yanzheng told the people around him about the bad deeds of the trafficker with tears in his eyes.

"Brothers, sisters, uncles, aunts, grandpas, grandmas!" Lin Yan raised his hands and rubbed his eyes, and said emotionally, "My little brother, the handsome guy standing next to him, was trafficked by this scum when he was 4 or 5 years old. The prisoner was secretly carried out from his hometown. He was not given food or drink on the way, and he was beaten so that his body was covered with blood. Later, they wanted to sell him to the mountains to be their son. I jumped off the car on the road and broke three ribs!"

"Three!" Lin Yan waved his fingers and repeated gestures, "He endured the pain and ran to our place. When he was hungry, he rummaged through the trash can to find something to eat. When he was thirsty, he drank the rainwater. When he was sleepy, he hid under the wall and slept. Now, this Human traffickers dare to set foot on the border of our Xicheng again, rob here, and grab the bags of the two little brothers over there. Everyone judges, should such a scumbag be beaten!"

Lin Yan is a man with a smooth tongue and a face of an obedient student. What he says is overwhelming.Gradually, people around began to echo, or applaud, or even take the initiative to call the police.Seeing that the battle was getting bigger, Lin Yan suddenly felt that he had made a mistake, and felt a little uneasy.He Zhengxi didn't act lightly, if something really went wrong and he was bitten back, he wouldn't have the money to deal with it.

"Ahem," Lin Yan rubbed his hands, "Everyone has seen it too. If this kind of scum is not sent to prison, I don't know how many children will be forced to leave their parents and family in the future. For the crime of this scum, Child abduction and road robbery are enough sentences for decades, when the police uncle comes, I hope you can help us brothers to testify, and stop letting scum continue to harm the world!"

He Zhengxi was confused, why did he have three broken ribs, when did he drink rainwater?It is true that there were times when he was extremely thirsty, but at that time, he went to a small fast food shop on the roadside to ask for boiled water...

At Lin Yan's level, he could directly participate in the speech contest, full of righteous indignation and impassioned.He walked slowly to Lin Yan's side, tugged on his brother's sleeve, and said in a low voice, "It's almost brother, take it away, if you use too much force, if you continue talking, people will think it's fake."

Lin Yan gave He Zhengxi a high five in his heart.At this moment, the emotions are brewing just right, just wait patiently for the police to come, at worst let He Zhengxi explain the situation clearly, you can't run, you can't lose the initiative.He and the owner of the barbecue shop asked for two thick hemp ropes to tie up the scum's hands and feet and throw them on the side of the road.

Not long after, the siren sounded, and several policemen broke through the crowd and came over.Lin Yan looked at the past face by face and smiled.

He put on a bright smile, waved his hands and shouted: "Brother Lu Chi!" Lin Yan pointed to the suspect who was tied into a crab, "You say it's a coincidence, the trafficker who abducted our family He Zhengxi back then, today Still robbing in the alley, caught by He Zhengxi!"

Lu Chi couldn't help being called "Brother" by Lin Yan. Didn't he just keep saying "Brother Lu" before, and occasionally called "Lao Lu" and "Dalu" in the same way, and even got "Ma Ye"? "This kind of nickname... In short, no matter how you call it, you never say "Brother Lu Chi" in a serious way.

He looked down at the suspect and understood immediately.This unlucky scumbag was so beaten that his original face could hardly be seen, his face was swollen as if it had been flooded with water, and he didn't know if his front teeth were still there.

Lu Chi tried his best to hold back his laughter, and ordered his subordinates to bring the suspect back to the car, and shouted to the onlookers, "It's over, it's okay, continue to eat your food!" Then he turned his head and pointed at He Zhengxi's hand. The blood on the blood asked the two children: "What's the matter, the beating is so hard, whose blood is on the hand?"

He Zhengxi shook his arms and was about to speak when the two people who were robbed at the side finally spoke, one said: "Comrade policeman, I have to thank you little buddy, otherwise I would have to go out of town to make up the contract." Another echoed: "That's right, the two children are too brave, they deserve a reward!" Then he took out a wad of money from his bag and handed it to Lin Yan and He Zhengxi.

Lu Chi frowned: "You have so much money in your bag in the middle of the night, are you still a little vigilant? You four, you have to come with me, and we can talk about it after we understand the situation."

He greeted He Zhengxi's head while walking, and said again: "The attack is neither serious nor serious, that kind of person has a hard bone, and doesn't know how to ensure his own safety first? Do you need to uphold justice?"

Lin Yan watched behind him for a while, and said unconvinced: "Touch my brother's forehead once, and I'll give you five yuan."

He Zhengxi said helplessly, "I'm too worthless!"

Lin Yan: "Then how much money do you want? Let me tell you, your money is my money, and you can't spend it carelessly." He walked two steps, and suddenly wailed, stopped and raised his heavy hands and shouted Said: "Meat stuffing and peanut oil! Brother Lu Chi! Do you have a refrigerator in your bureau! We have to make dumplings tomorrow, mutton!"

After hearing this, Lu Chi couldn't help but collapse again. These two children, the point is all wrong!Do you know what big thing you just did? !

He stretched out his hand to pinch Lin Yan's mouth that kept talking, and said seriously: "There is a small refrigerator in the bureau, and I will put minced meat for you at that time. When you get there, what do you say, don't make me smart, you know?" Lin Yan nodded silently.

The matter of He Zhengxi is a bit serious in a single theory.He was not robbed, although he acted bravely, but he beat him right away and seriously injured him. The two brothers were still young, and after calming down, they were quite disturbed, and they no longer had the mood to eat dumplings.But because he had a background of being trafficked by this person, he was young, and the victim and the crowd of onlookers testified, so he was not held accountable, and even received an extra pennant.

Even so, it took some time to deal with this back and forth, and when I was completely relieved, the calendar had already turned to mid-June.Feng Bowen and Song Rui finished their college entrance examinations and went on a trip. During this period, He Zhengxi didn't go out to play again. He went home directly after learning, and his life was extremely peaceful.

Lin Yan was still thinking about the dumpling for Lao Jiang.At noon on the day when the pennant was hung at home, He Zhengxi happily went out with the thermos bucket.He took the spare key to open the door of Laojiang Clinic, and shouted inside:

"Grandpa Jiang?"

There was no answer, and the room smelled musty.

He Zhengxi opened the curtain of the clinic and walked to the back yard.

Lao Jiang's work and rest time is very regular. He gets up at 6 o'clock in the morning, decocts medicine, eats breakfast, and the clinic opens on time at 8 o'clock.He Zhengxi looked at the wall clock on the wall, it was almost 12 o'clock, is Lao Jiang still sleeping?

As He Zhengxi walked, his throat gradually tightened, and he felt a little worried.

The layout of Laojiang's small courtyard is different from that of the old ancestral hall. It is very closed, and the patio is sealed with a roof. Although it can keep out the rain, most of the sunlight is also blocked.The largest room facing the street was cleaned up for medical consultation, and Lao Jiang slept in a side room inside.

He pushed open the door of the bedroom, and it was a little dark inside.He Zhengxi turned on the light, and the room suddenly lit up. He blinked, and after getting used to the light, he finally saw Lao Jiang's position clearly.But just this one glance made He Zhengxi's blood stagnate.

"Grandpa Jiang...?"

He stood there in a daze for a moment, then stepped forward and tried to shake Lao Jiang's shoulders, but the person lying on the bed didn't respond.He Zhengxi squeezed the handle of the thermos bucket hard. He didn't feel scared, but he didn't believe it, he didn't believe that he would experience such a thing.

There was a layer of dried blood on Lao Jiang's ear pinna, his body had become cold, and he didn't have a breath of life.

At this time, He Zhengxi's five senses gradually came back.He sniffed, and a strange smell came into his nostrils.He Zhengxi leaned over to see the mattress under Lao Jiang's body, it was damp.

Lao Jiang is gone.

12-year-old He Zhengxi's mind was blank. He didn't know how he staggered back to the old ancestral hall, let alone how he dragged Lin Yan all the way to Lao Jiang's clinic.His heart was very chaotic, but it seemed empty.He Zhengxi knew that Lao Jiang might not be saved, but he still called 120 with shaking hands.He hoped that the ambulance would be faster, maybe Lao Jiang could come back?After all, nothing happened last time...

But such a miracle did not happen again.

The stories always talk about how peaceful it is when a person walks away, but He Zhengxi felt that Lao Jiang's walk was too painful, he had a sudden cerebral hemorrhage, and the hematoma directly invaded the brainstem.The doctor told the two children that such a disease is very painful when it occurs, dizziness, vomiting, incontinence, disturbance of consciousness...

In the middle of the night when no one asked, Lao Jiang left this world alone in despair and loneliness. He didn't even have time to talk about his past with Lin Yan and his brothers.

The neighbors on Linshui Street helped Lao Jiang's funeral. Even Xu Jialin rushed back to offer incense sticks.

"Jianghu Doctor" is a small clinic with a small location, but it has been open on Linshui Street for more than ten years.Residents changed crop after crop, no matter who he was, Lao Jiang always greeted him with a smile.He has good medical skills and is very popular.For He Zhengxi and Lin Yan, Lao Jiang was more like a family member. On the days when there were no adults to accompany him, it was this old man with a bit of a bad tongue who laughed and played with them.

Facing the death of their loved ones for the first time, they were at a loss.